Coffee with Sara McIntosh

We had the great pleasure of visiting leather artisan and shoemaker Sara McIntosh in her Ravenswood studio for our final visit this season.  

Sara has made a lifelong career out of a personal need for a pair of shoes almost 40 years ago. She deconstructed her old pair of desert boots to see how they were made and created her first pair of shoes--it was then that her cobbler journey began.  Today she is one of the few individuals in the country crafting custom fit shoes and boots by hand.

Driven to inspire others in her craft, Sara opened the Chicago School of Shoemaking in 2011 where she teaches the fundamentals of leather working and shoemaking. Her goal for the school is to provide an environment that is creative, supportive and empowering while offering skills toward cottage industry and enhancing lifestyles through creative hands-on projects.

Make sure to check out Sara's booth at next week's One of a Kind Holiday Show where she will bring leather goods of all kinds for that someone special on your holiday gift list! 

Read more about Sara McIntosh and other artists exhibiting at the show.